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fa-lammā raʾā l-qamara bāzighan qāla hādhā rabbī fa-lammā ʾafala qāla la-ʾin lam yahdinī rabbī la-ʾakūnanna mina l-qawmi ḍ-ḍāllīna
Then, when he saw the moon rising, he said, ‘This is my Lord!’ But when it set, he said, ‘Had my Lord not guided me, I would surely have been among the astray lot.’
— Ali Quli Qarai
Surah Al-‘An’am, Verses 77 - 79
77. "Then when he saw the moon uprising, he said: 'This is my Lord!' But when it set, he said: 'If my Lord does not guide me I shall surely be of the people gone astray.' "
78. "And when he saw the sun uprising, he said: 'This is my Lord; this is greater!' But when it set, he said: 'O my people! Surely I am quit of that you associate. (with Allah) '."
79. "Verily I have turned my face (myself wholly) toward Him Who created the heavens and the earth, being upright, and I am not of the idolaters." 6
When Abraham saw that people used to worship idols and adored the sun, the moon and stars, he decided to aware them of their fault and to open the window of their insight. He tried to show them the way of thinking and reasoning, so that they could realize that none of the things they were worshipping had eligibility of being worshipped, since all of them were creatable. Abraham (as) said:
This phrase is the statement of a person who intends to show condescension to his opponent. He (as) knows that the opposite party's belief is wrong, but, without showing any religious prejudice about his own creed, he narrates that person's wrong idea in order to encourage him towards the truth and to clear out his heart from falsehood. Thus, by reasoning in the next sentence, Abraham (as) has proved the invalidity of the belief of the opposite party.
Abraham (as) told those people:
He meant he did not like worshipping those gods which were covered with such curtains, because those qualities belonged to the corporeal substances. They were some evidences to their being creatable.
Abraham stated this sentence as a warning to his people. He (as) announced that whoever takes the moon, which, like other stars, is a setting one, as his god, is among the astray ones. And, there is no guide to the truth save the Grace and Mercy of Allah.
Abraham, seeing the sun, said that it was greater (than the others). He has also stated this phrase to show condescension and softness from himself to his opposite party, but after that he said:
He implied that he disliked those corporeal substances which they had taken as partners of their Creator. Then, Abraham (as) continued saying:
That is, I have believed in the One Who has created the heavens and the earth. These phenomena themselves indicate that Allah, the Creator, has brought them forth and runs their different circumstances and regularities Himself. He (S.w.T.) specifies their way and appoints the times of their risings and settings. Hence, I have turned my self wholly to His Lordship sincerely, and I am not one of the polytheists.
The Qur'anic term /'hanif/ (upright) is derived from /'hanafa/ with the sense of 'sincere' and 'without any deviation'. Also, the Arabic word /fatara/ (created) originally means: 'cleared'. It may refer to some meaning which is found in the modern science. It suggests that, at first, the universe had been in the form of a single mass. After that, the mass cleft into some separate parts and the celestial bodies came into existence one after another.
Footnotes